2003 Protege5 problems

Okay I can do that but my only problem is that I'm still really new to all this and I'm not 100% sure what I should check for (Sorry if this sounds stupid...) I presume that I would just be looking if the pad is touching the rotor right? I was originally going to take a look with someone who knows better then me...

Lifting a corner is good practice anyway,.. in case you ever get a flat (check your owners manual for proper placement). Just get the tire off the ground and spin it,... I could barely move mine,... you'll notice if it's dragging. It may make a bit of a rubbing noise but the tire should spin quite freely.
As far as just a quick inspection goes,.. just go up close to the wheel and sniff a bit for that burning brake smell,... put your hand on the middle of the wheel and see if it's hot.

A guy a couple of weeks ago said his rear rotor was glowing red hot,... that's real bad

If you've got a standard, you can kind of get an idea of drag when you're coasting to a stop,.. take your foot off the brake when you're going about one mile an hour and pay attention to the very last bit of movement as it completely stops. If that last little bit of movement is kinda a jerk,... if you now what I mean. Picture a bicycle wheel with over tightened bearings and the way it stops when you spin it freely,.. it stops kinda notchy like. I do it every once in a while,... if your on a slight incline,.. you shouldn't notice anything as the car slows stops then starts to roll backwards. You'll know what I mean after trying it a few times.
 
Lifting a corner is good practice anyway,.. in case you ever get a flat (check your owners manual for proper placement). Just get the tire off the ground and spin it,... I could barely move mine,... you'll notice if it's dragging. It may make a bit of a rubbing noise but the tire should spin quite freely.
As far as just a quick inspection goes,.. just go up close to the wheel and sniff a bit for that burning brake smell,... put your hand on the middle of the wheel and see if it's hot.

A guy a couple of weeks ago said his rear rotor was glowing red hot,... that's real bad

If you've got a standard, you can kind of get an idea of drag when you're coasting to a stop,.. take your foot off the brake when you're going about one mile an hour and pay attention to the very last bit of movement as it completely stops. If that last little bit of movement is kinda a jerk,... if you now what I mean. Picture a bicycle wheel with over tightened bearings and the way it stops when you spin it freely,.. it stops kinda notchy like. I do it every once in a while,... if your on a slight incline,.. you shouldn't notice anything as the car slows stops then starts to roll backwards. You'll know what I mean after trying it a few times.

I have been paying close attention when coming to a stop, so far I haven't heard any odd noises, haven't had any sort of jerking motion as you mention (I do get what you mean with the bike analogy) and no odd smells, but regardless I will jack it up later today and spin the wheel to see if there are any irregularities.
 
Try to find a perfectly level and flat surface and just inch it forward a foot or so and feel for it. (I'm assuming you have a standard. If not you might be able to do it in neutral)

Apparently only 4% of cars on the road are standard but our car on the Canadian web site kijiji shows that half of them are standard. This is definitely a car to drive with a standard.

Consider doing a brake service when you change out your wheels,... basically greasing your sliders. I do it every spring and it definitely needs it by then. It's not hard to do and I'm sure there must be a thread about it with pictures to help. It's kinda fun to do when spring fever kicks in.
 
I thought I'd practice my new FSM cut & paste skills.

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I've never had any luck permanently 'fixing' my rear brake cable...It seems its more of an issue with whatever pads you are using...I had my stock brakes for about 75,000 miles iirc...then replaced every single brake part with an upgraded package from another mazda...the rear calipers are slightly bigger, with a different internal piston, and larger pads and rotors...and i STILL have to pull the e-brake handle to nearly the last click to stop from rolling on a steep hill...

I've adjusted it, played around with the little retainer clips, etc...its very tight and nice for the first few thousand miles of fresh pads, but quickly returns to the having to pull it all the way thing...I did use some various 'performance' after market pads from time to time in the rear, and that helped a little more...but it seems these cars already have a slight bit of rear brake bias, and performance pads in the back were making it very easy to lock a rear tire before the front...so i simply gave up haha...

So i'm not saying your case is fine...but mine has been this way for another 75k miles...and no problems with dragging a rotor or anything...just the slightest bit of a hill at a stop and the car drifts easily...and pad life has been great...i'm pretty sure its just a design issue that doesn't adjust very much with pad wear...good news, i guess, is its very easy way to gauge how much life is left on the rear pads...

and what tweety said: if you're reading '3/4' on the dip stick, you're only 1/4 of a quart low...in a ~3.5 quart system...you're perfectly fine in that regard...I agree that mazda's are kind of notorious for engines that burn oil (must be back lash from building all those rotaries har har), but its not really anything to worry about until you start dipping down into a quart every 500 to 750 miles or so...then something is definitely up...As far as black oil, that could be as simple as the brand of filter you're using...
 
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Thanks for all your help guys, very much appreciated. I'm a lot more comfortable knowing that these things are more or less "normal" for this type of car...should it be like this probably not but oh well... I don't mind adjusting the cable and regardless I leave it in gear all the time just for this reason. As for oil, I will keep an eye out if it gets worse and in terms of filters I have been using Fram or Quaker, I would have thought these were good filters (at least Fram)... I have been changing oil on a 01 accord with the same type of filters and never had a problem.
 
next time you change the oil, a cheap thing to try out...Look in the book at the parts store for a 2001 Mazda 626 V6 filter...and buy that...its the exact same, only slightly 'deeper' with a larger internal element...the tuna can these cars normally get are goofy..i've been using the V6 filters ever since i bought it...with no noticeable issues so far...

see if that cleans up your oil a little better...and the price for the filter will be the same...with the larger filter add an extra 1/4 quart of oil or so...the deeper element will hold more out of the engine.
 
next time you change the oil, a cheap thing to try out...Look in the book at the parts store for a 2001 Mazda 626 V6 filter...and buy that...its the exact same, only slightly 'deeper' with a larger internal element...the tuna can these cars normally get are goofy..i've been using the V6 filters ever since i bought it...with no noticeable issues so far...

see if that cleans up your oil a little better...and the price for the filter will be the same...with the larger filter add an extra 1/4 quart of oil or so...the deeper element will hold more out of the engine.

I will give that a try but I also want to try a different brand filter. The last filter I used was the FRAM tough guard. I don't usually go for the more expensive FRAM but I just happened to have an old one for a different car and exchanged for the only one available which was the tough guard...regardless the tough guard hasn't seemed to be helping if i'm getting black oil after 4000km. Is going for a Mobil 1 or K & N going to help or am I just throwing money away and might as well go and try the OEM one and see if that does anything?
 
If your issue is the color of the oil then no, no regular car filter will help you. They do not filter down small enough to remove the tiny blowby particles that cause the color of the oil to change. Your best bet is to run a 1/3rd can of seafoam for 100mi to break up any deposits then change your oil and filter. While you're at it change your PCV valve if you havent already.
If your underlying issue is with rings, valves/valve seals, or a head gasket than nothing but a rebuild will fix it. 10w40 may help a little. GL
 
^yeah i should've mentioned...i didn't actually see your 'black' oil...I've run Mobil 1 V6 filters since my very first oil change...with mobil 1 10w 30, unless for someone reason i changed it in the winter where i'd go with 5w 30...which i only did maybe twice...

my oil is dark at about 7500 miles when i change it, but not in an overly bad way or anything...there are lots of different things that determine an oils appearance...namely carbon...but how the carbon 'got in there' is whats up in the air for you...detergents in higher grade oils are specifically designed to wash that carbon into the filter...but if you're blackening the oil nearly immediately, thats a sign of excessive blow by...in which the oil isn't 'washing' anything off of metal parts, its simply flash burning from coming into contact with hot exhaust gas every cycle...low amounts of blow by will turn the oil black very quickly, but not necessarily burn the oil completely away...if that makes sense...

a cylinder compression test will pin point what kind of blow by you're dealing with...even moderate blow by is considered 'normal', so don't panic...

i was only suggesting to try a better filter as it will be no difference in price...if that solves some of the problem, you're up against some pretty heavy carbon deposits...and sea-foam or 'restore' type oil additives may help a little more...if the filter does nothing, and a compression test reads pretty low...baby that thing...its getting pretty tired...
 
whats fraid?


A piece of rope wanted to go to the bar with his friends but he was the only one that was a rope and the bar wouldn't serve ropes. So his buddies tied him in a knot and messed up his hair and they all walked in together. They all sat down at the bar and the bartender said aren't you a rope. The rope looked him straight in the eyes and said No I'm A Frayed Knot !!!
 
I will change the PCV valve as it has been recommended to me by others as well. As for a compression test I can do one I just have no idea how and I most likely don't have the tools... I guess for this one it would be easier to take it to a mechanic?
 
When ever I remove a spark plug, (as you do for a compression test) I crack the plug maybe one turn loose then blow out the hole with a piece of tubing to blow out any crap. Our plug holes are covered up pretty good but I learned that lesson with my motor cycle when a little pebble/grain of sand fell in the spark plug hole after removing the plug.
 
I will change the PCV valve as it has been recommended to me by others as well. As for a compression test I can do one I just have no idea how and I most likely don't have the tools... I guess for this one it would be easier to take it to a mechanic?

you can rent a compression gauge, but yeah...you really need a cylinder 'leak down' test...which is a bit more complicated, diy wise, than just static psi at tdc (the info a compression gauge will give you)...

so in that case, unless you have access to a good air source and don't mind spending money on a tool for only a single purpose...it would be better to just take it to a good mechanic...luckily, our engine's have VERY easy to access spark plugs, so the labor involved with all that will be nearly zero...and the test can be done in minutes after that...
 
I have some updates, I replaced the PCV valve and did my scheduled oil change, I will monitor the consumption every 500km to 1000km. As for the brakes, to make a long story short this morning when I was leaving I put the handbrake down to leave as I usually do and what do you know my brakes were seized... I tried to loosen the cable with no success, so I drove around 5km hoping to get it lose, still no luck (Wasn't the greatest idea to drag my brakes but I didn't know what else to do at that point), so I parked my car and that was that. It loosened up later when it got warmer and I had someone fully release the cable from underneath, took it to a shop and it turns out my left rear cable seizes up over time and was told I need a new cable. Rotors, pads, and calipers were all fine with pads having lots of life left in them. So now I guess I found out what the problem was with the handbrake, I will have to get that cable replaced.
 
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